[NLRS] A newbie needs advice -- who can help?

[Todd Sprinkmann]

   Hello,

   I've gotten some email today from a new guy out in the
La Crosse area.  He's asking questions that are better
answered by someone else.

   It's about digital modes in the contest and some CW
questions as well.

   I'm cutting and pasting the relevant parts and hopefully
someone can help him out.  He's going to be contesting
with his 12 year-old son so any help would be a nice gesture.

   Please reply to him directly at thepalmhq at gmail.com

   Thanks in advance, 73, good luck to all this weekend,
   Todd  KC9BQA  EN63ao    40 N of Milwaukee
   50 thru 2304

----- Original Message ----- From: "David Palm" <thepalmhq at gmail.com>
To: "Todd Sprinkmann" <sprinkies at excel.net>
Sent: Friday, January 16, 2009 11:50 AM
Subject: Post-contest questions




  Hey Todd,

  Okay, we are definitely going to be participating, in our small way, 
in thecontest tomorrow.  We're going to wait until tomorrow morning to 
put the 10
  element, 2 meter beam on a rotor (so it doesn't freeze up overnight), 
so
  hopefully that will work at least during the daylight hours while it's
  reasonable warm.  I'm only going to have the beam on 2 meters, a wire 
dipole
  for 6, and a vertical for 440.  But still, we'll be in the game.

  As I mentioned, we'll be using Christopher's call, KC9JTL.  I presume,
  however, that we'll submit as a multi-operator station if each of us 
takes a
  turn at the mic occasionally?  Right?

  I know that we can't get contest points on the repeater, but can we 
"drum up
  business" on the repeater?  I thought the ARRL rules were a bit 
ambiguous on
  that point.  It says that you can't use any non-Amateur means during 
the
  contest.  But the repeater is Amateur means.  So what's your take on 
that?
  Can I have a buddy go to 2 meter and 440 simplex after we talk on the
  repeater?  (This isn't how I really want to do things, but I'm just 
askin').

  How about digital modes?  Do they just count as CW?  Is there any
  possibility of any activity in the evenings/nights on digital if I 
point the
  beam at the larger populations centers (Twin 
Cities/Milwaukee/Chicago)?
  Perhaps you don't really know.

  How about the meteor scatter stuff.  Do those contact count during a
  contest?  I have started reading the manual.....sheesh!  Still, it 
would be
  fun to give it a try sometime, if not tomorrow night.

  Is there much CW activity?

  Okay, that's all I can think of right now.

  Thanks and 73,

  David

  On Fri, Jan 16, 2009 at 1:42 PM, Todd Sprinkmann <sprinkies at excel.net> 
wrote:

     Hi David,

     Thanks for your questions.  I see you got the ARRL edict
    about no contesting or soliciting on repeaters.

     I'm not a digital modes guy.  Just not into it.  However, all
    kinds of guys will use them in the contest and so forth. With
    your permission, I'd like to forward your email to a few VHF
    groups and see if anyone will reply directly to you.

     If that's OK with you, I think you will have at least some
    informed feedback on how the digi modes are counted for
    contest logging purposes.  As well as who's on from where
    with those modes, and meteor scatter as well.

     I can tell you there's plenty of CW activity in contests. What
    I'm not really up to speed on is whether there are certain
    portions of the band where CW is concentrated.  I'd like
    someone more experienced to comment on that, too.

     David, may I forward this thread to some folks who will help?

     73,
     Todd  KC9BQA